That Was A Promise
by Soleil Solitaire
Summary: Sequel to If It Had Been Hinata. Actually, this sequel will be a collection of oneshots, all focused on Sasuke’s promise. Yes, Sasuke’s OOC. SasuHina. :3
1. Goodbye Nightmares

{| SASUxHINA: Owned by Masashi Kishimoto. :3 Sequel to If It Had Been Hinata. Actually, this sequel will be a collection of oneshots, all focused on Sasuke's promise. Yes, Sasuke's OOC. |}

And the sneaking around commenced after that night.

It was their little secret, their backstage relationship, for their eyes only. At night, when Hinata would have her nightmares again, Sasuke would be waiting at the village gate, where they first spoke to each other. Also, where Sasuke made his promise. It was where they knew they could find each other, in the protective blanket of the night.

_You do know pain, and I will make sure you never feel it again, _he said that night.

It was nearing midnight already, and the Uchiha boy heard slow-paced and quiet footsteps headed for the gate. From his perch at one of the trees above, the steps sounded almost ethereal, imagined. Like if you let your guard down, you would have missed them. But that was his assurance that it was a friend, not a foe, who was coming towards him.

When he saw a little black head below him, scanning the area around her, he immediately jumped off the tree. He noticed her jump back a bit. They'd been meeting for a lot of consecutive nights already, but she still couldn't get used to the sudden movements of the Uchiha.

"U-Uchiha-san," she stuttered, as usual. "Good evening."

"Obviously hasn't been a good evening for you since you're here," he replied, never failing at letting out a sarcastic remark. Hinata had gotten used to this though. She knew some things never change.

"Tell me about your bad dream tonight," he said, sitting down below the big tree behind him. He patted the ground beside him, motioning her to sit next to him. She did as she was silently told.

"Um… I was… running away again," she started, hesitating as she always did. "I didn't know e-exactly what I was running from, but I was running into the forest. And… and then it started to storm and there was lightning and thunder… and I was lost. There w-wasn't any shelter either. And then I started hearing noises and… and…"

"It was only a dream," Sasuke said, looking up at the blank sky.

"Yes, I… I know, Uchiha-san…," she said. "But…"

He suddenly turned his head to face her. There was _never _a 'but' before. Their conversations had been pretty much the same every night, starting with her briefly explaining her dream, then they would start to talk about their day. There was never a 'but' before.

"But what?" He asked, obviously intrigued by the sudden follow-up.

"But… I can't help b-but think that… well, some people say that dreams are r-reflections of our lives." she explained, then she hesitantly added, "either that or… reflections of our f-futures."

Sasuke raised his eyebrows. This wasn't like her at all, and he wasn't just thinking about the fact that she, for now maybe, had the courage to voice her thoughts on her nightmare.

"Hinata," he slowly said, carefully choosing his next words, "you don't actually believe that it's possible for your nightmares to come true in the future, right? I mean, they're only dreams."

"I… I don't know Sasuke," she said, playing with a weed with her fingers. "Maybe… I already am lost."

Now, he was truly shocked, but not at her, but at himself. He had the aching urge to hug her now. Just hold her and tell her that everything was going to be okay, even if he knew that in reality it _all_ wasn't going to be okay. But that's only because he had no one to successfully reassure him in his times of pain. He wanted to be that someone for Hinata. Why? He didn't really know.

As he reached out to put his hands on her shoulder, only to bring it back, he thought about it. Maybe it was because he understood so much. He understood the type of pain that medical nins couldn't cure. He understood the longing for something better, something out of reach.

He swallowed some air in, and reached for her shoulder again, successfully placing his hand on her shoulder. She flinched and looked up to look into his dark eyes, surprised at the contact. He hadn't touched her since that night she caught him almost leaving Konoha.

Feeling a surge of courage, she inched closer to him until their hips touched, never breaking eye contact. The Uchiha didn't ditch his stoic expression, but inside, he was glad she felt comfortable with him. That would make it easier for him to make her happier. After all, he did promise.

She brought her head down on his shoulder and his hand trailed down to her hip, and eventually, both of his arms were around her. She was nodding off to sleep. It was nice watching her like this. Serene, peaceful, and happy. She had the hint of a smile on her face.

When he was sure she was sound asleep, he whispered something into her ear.

"Don't let bad dreams get the best of you," he whispered. "They're only dreams."

Little did he know that the Hyuuga was only half-asleep, and heard him. Inside her head, she thought, _I won't, Uchiha-san. Thank you._ That was when she truly fell into a deep sleep.

He picked her up in his arms and quietly started for the Hyuuga house, careful not to wake anybody up. When he was inside Hinata's bedroom, he carefully placed her on the bed, tucked her in, and hurried back to his place.

Hinata never had nightmares again, but that didn't stop her from occasionally stepping out of her room near midnight and meeting her secret friend.


	2. Stepping Forward

{| SASUxHINA: Owned by Masashi Kishimoto. :3 Sequel to If It Had Been Hinata. Actually, this sequel will be a collection of oneshots, all focused on Sasuke's promise. Yes, Sasuke's OOC. |}

"Sasuke-kun and Hinata-chan?!" Yamanaka Ino screamed. "You're kidding!"

"Nope, not kidding Ino-chan, I saw them together with my own eyes," Haruno Sakura said, feigning excitement. "In the middle of the night, together, _talking_."

"No way, I never thought of pairing them up with each other, actually," Ino said, placing a finger on her chin, going into her thinking stance. Ino had long gotten over Sasuke when she discovered the man who she really did love and loved her back as well. Sakura? Not really.

Sakura had been bitter since she saw them together one night. Extremely bitter. But she didn't want to show it, since Ino was taking it so amazingly well. She didn't want to come off as the sore loser, which she actually was in this situation.

Away from that side of town, Sasuke and Hinata were taking a little walk around. Since Hinata had been having good sleeps most nights and barely woke up to meet Sasuke at midnight anymore, they were taking their friendship outside now. This was Hinata's idea, surprisingly. She may be the quiet type, but she wasn't the type to just let go of people like him. They continued to try to keep incognito though, but people were definitely going to notice now.

They were walking in silence for a few minutes now, until Hinata eyed her favorite candy store coming up. She smiled to herself, and looked at Sasuke, who was stoic again. It took her a lot of her nerve to ask to stop for a moment.

"Uh, Sasuke-san?" she said. "Do you think we could stop by the candy store for a while?"

Sasuke looked at the girl, seeing the light dance in her eyes. Who knew it took candy to make her look this giddy? He found it… cute of her. So he obliged without a second thought.

The bell above the door rang as they stepped inside, alerting the man behind the counter that there was a customer. The smell of sugar clung onto the air and to their noses. Sasuke felt like vomiting, honestly, but this was for Hinata.

"Well hello there, good morning, Hinata-chan!" The shopkeeper greeted with a big smile. Then he nodded towards Sasuke. "Good morning to you too." Sasuke didn't flinch, and instead replied with a grunt. The shopkeeper didn't seem surprised though.

Hinata scanned through the rack filled with lollipops, her favorite. She took one of them, careful not to cause any racket with the other lollipops. It was a big swirly one with strokes of red, blue and green. She handed it to the cashier and reached into her pocket, before Sasuke stopped her.

"I'll pay," he simply said, as he brought out some money from his pocket.

"N-no, that won't be necessary, Sasuke-san," Hinata quickly stuttered out, but it was too late. He had already handed his money over and gotten his change.

"Th-thank you, Sasuke-san," she said, blushing.

Sasuke just smirked, the closest he could get to a smile, and nodded. "You're welcome, Hinata."

He watched her intently as they walked out of the store, noticing that she only let out a little bit of her tongue to lick her candy. He watched as a blush stayed on her cheeks, making her look prettier than ever. The slight pink turned into a red though, as Hinata noticed she was being watched.

"Sasuke-san," she said, smiling, "why are you staring at me?"

He smirked again and brought his hand up to ruffle her hair, making her flinch a little.

"Because," he said, "you're amusing."

_Not to mention cute,_ he thought to himself. He immediately gave himself a mental slap for thinking that about Hinata. Thinking she was cute, pretty and amusing. Which she was, actually.

"Hey, isn't she that Hyuuga loser?"

Sasuke's head instantly snapped up, surveying the area. First, he looked at Hinata, who was still happily eating her lollipop. She probably hadn't heard that. Then, he spotted a group of scruffy-looking, older shinobi ganged up ahead. They were whispering to each other, but Sasuke could hear everything they were saying about his companion.

"Yeah, didn't she lose to that Hyuuga brat, but genius, Neji?" One of them snickered.

_Okay,_ Sasuke told himself. _Keep it together, Sasuke, you don't want to fight with these losers._

"Yeah, she lost pretty badly too. Lost her life in the process, almost. She should have just quit, maybe then she wouldn't have gotten so humiliated, and in front of a crowd too man," one of them said.

_One more and I swear they're going down,_ Sasuke thought, obviously on edge.

"Please, I already saw her as a useless weakling shinobi the first time I saw her. Just gave off that air, you know. I almost feel stupid for calling her a shinobi. That weakling doesn't deserve royalty." They all burst out laughing. All of them, laughing away like cocky bastards. He looked at Hinata again, seeing the blush was still there, but this time her eyes looked different. Sad.

This made something snap in the Uchiha.

"Will you shut up?!" He stomped over at their little circle and screamed. He activated his sharingan, causing their eyes to grow wider. Causing Hinata's eyes to grow wider, petrifying her. "One more, just one more stupid, arrogant remark, and you won't live to tell the tale."

He just stared at them all for a few minutes, putting on the most menacing look he's put on since he was faced with his brother some time ago. Then he turned on his heel and left them, quickly walking towards Hinata, who was shivering in fear now.

"Come on," he said, grabbing her hand and whisking her away in the opposite direction, towards the training grounds. He was sure no one was training right now and felt like they needed to talk. Alone.

He let go of her hand once they got there and promptly plopped down under one of the trees, waiting for her appeal. He was sure she was going to say something. Something that would ultimately bring him down for scaring her back there. But instead, she sat down next to him and smiled.

"Th-thank you, Sasuke-kun," she said bashfully. "No one has ever done that for me before."

Sasuke looked at her, showing the slightest hint of shock on his face. He had expected her to say something, but what he had been expecting was a lecture, not gratitude. He knew though, looking beyond her, that she was a bit rattled from that encounter, but didn't want to mention it.

He was staring at her again. No, they were staring at each other. Their gazes seemed to have been locked to each other, and neither looked away. Hinata thought that Sasuke was handsome indeed, but never noted it before. She was too distracted, she thought. At this point, Sasuke was too distracted to look at any other girl besides Hinata. He couldn't imagine talking to someone other than her. She knew how to listen, and she was a beautiful sight to boot.

Sasuke found himself falling for her, slowly but surely.

The sun was setting already, meaning they had to go soon or they would raise suspicion. So, he broke his gaze and abruptly got up, holding out his hand to help Hinata up. Ever the gentleman.

"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

She nodded in response, smiling at him. He noticed she was smiling more now when he was around her, and that made him smile. Not a smirk or a half-smile, but a real smile, spreading on his lips like a contagious disease.

Without thinking, he grabbed her shoulders and kissed her on the forehead, causing her to blush violently. She looked up at Sasuke, a confused expression, mixed with shock, on her face. Before she had the chance to say something, Sasuke rested one of his hands on her waist, the other held her chin. His expression had gone from glad to serious, again.

"Sasuke-kun," she said slowly. "I don't understand."

"Am I making you uneasy, Hinata-chan?" he asked her, looking directly into her eyes. It felt different now, being this close to each other.

She shook her head. "N-no, you aren't, but why? Why me?"

Sasuke smiled and stroked her hair. "Just hold still, my reasons can wait."

And with that, he slowly closed the distance between them, gently brushing her lips with his. She placed her hands on his chest, showing no resistance, and kissed him back.

This was the happiest she had ever been.


	3. Devious

{| SASUxHINA: Owned by Masashi Kishimoto. :3 Sequel to If It Had Been Hinata. Actually, this sequel will be a collection of oneshots, all focused on Sasuke's promise. Yes, Sasuke's OOC. |}

Hinata Hyuuga opened her eyes and was greeted by bright daylight. From her bedroom, she could hear the birds chirping and the children playing outside. When she looked out the window, she saw that there wasn't a dark cloud in sight. It was a beautiful day. She smiled.

That day, she was feeling quite reckless.

She got out of bed and went down to get breakfast. Everyone at the breakfast table saw how oddly chipper she was that morning. Hanabi shot Hinata a quizzical look.

"Someone's little miss sunshine all of a sudden," she said.

Hinata just laughed, getting her father's attention.

"What is it now, Hinata?" he asked gruffly.

"N-Nothing, otousan," she replied quietly.

"O-Otousan?"

"What is it now?" he asked, irritation obvious in his voice.

"Can I go o-out for a s-swim today?" she asked.

"Yes, that would be fine," he answered, "now shut your mouth and eat your breakfast."

Hinata sighed. Her father was excellent at ruining someone's perfect day.

* * *

When Sakura Haruno woke up, on the other hand, it was far from a beautiful day.

Not only was she still bitter about how Sasuke and Hinata were a couple now, she had also been up all night trying to figure out how to get revenge on Hinata, all to no avail. She couldn't think of anything she could do on her own, and getting help from Ino and the others meant telling her she wasn't over Sasuke yet. She had more pride than people think.

She sat up in bed and sighed. She knew it was wrong, but she wanted Sasuke for herself. She walked towards the window to open it, and caught Hinata walking alone on the streets.

"Huh?" she said to herself, peering out the window to check if it was her. It was.

_What's she doing all alone?_ Sakura thought.

A sly smile slowly appeared on her face. This makes it a lot easier.

She ran downstairs and told her mom she was going to skip breakfast for early training, and proceeded outside to follow Hinata to wherever she was going.

_This better be worth skipping breakfast._

* * *

Hinata walked into the forest and looked for the old pond she used to go swimming in when she was younger. On the way, she couldn't help but feel she was being followed, but she shrugged it off. She could only let her father ruin her day.

Like I said, she was feeling reckless.

When she found the swimming pond, she sighed. It still looked the same since the last time she saw it, which was years ago. She took off her clothes and hung them on a nearby bush along with her towel, until she was only in her undergarments. She stepped into the cool blue water.

_Why did I stop coming here again?_ She thought to herself. _Oh right, that._

She tried to shake the bad memories out of her mind as she took a dip, but they were all coming back. After the day her father was convinced she was of no use to the clan, she'd stopped swimming. She'd stopped a lot of her hobbies, actually. She used to be a happy kid.

_And now that I'm happy again, I won't let it go,_ she thought.

Then, her mind drifted off to Sasuke. She smiled.

_Who knew?_

* * *

Sakura followed Hinata into the forest. She was still quizzical and clueless as to where she was going. She thought that Hinata was probably just going to train, but then she saw that she stopped at the old swimming pond.

_She's going for a swim?_ She thought. _It's been years since she swam with me and Ino._

Sakura watched her swim from behind the bush that held her clothes, snickering to herself.

_This is just too easy,_ she thought as she grabbed Hinata's clothes and towel while she was underwater. She couldn't keep that sinister smile off her face.

_She'll never know what hit her,_ she thought as she ran away from the scene.

* * *

Hinata had been swimming for half an hour now, and her fingers were already wrinkling. She decided she should go back home or start training.

_That was nice,_ she said as she reached for her clothes. Then, she froze.

Her towel and her clothes were gone.

_I can't walk around the village in my underwear,_ she thought. Tears sprung to her eyes.

_Who would do this?_ She asked herself.

She sunk back down on the water. She was suddenly aware of where she was. Alone in the forest. Or was she alone? Was someone really following her? Well, obviously, since someone had stolen her clothes and towel. Was that person still here?

She started shivering. The water suddenly turned a lot colder for her.

"H-Hello?" she stuttered, desperate. "Is a-anyone th-there?"

There was no answer. She didn't know whether to be relieved or to panic.

"H-hello?" she tried, raising her voice. "H-help? Anyone? P-Please?"

Still no answer. Tears ran down her cheeks.

_What am I going to do now?_

* * *

Sasuke sighed. He was starting to get a bit worried now. He hadn't seen Hinata yet that day, and apparently, no one else has either. He even checked the training grounds. No sign of her.

"Hey, dobe," he called out to the blond-haired boy at the ramen shop.

"Oye, what's up, teme?" Naruto said while slurping his ramen loudly.

"You seen Hinata anywhere?" Sasuke asked nonchalantly.

"Ah, you don't have to pretend around me, Sasuke," he replied smugly. "I already know about you and Hinata-chan." He started to laugh, much to Sasuke's annoyance.

"Whatever, have you seen her anywhere?" he asked.

"Yeah, I saw her on her way to the forest," Naruto said.

"Alright then," Sasuke said, not bothering with gratitude.

"I saw Sakura-chan on her way there too."

Sasuke froze, his eyes widening. _Sakura? Following Hinata?_

He started running towards the forest. Who knows what Sakura would do if she got Hinata alone? There were dozens of possibilities, but he was convinced she wouldn't do anything too drastic.

When he got near the swimming pond, he started hearing quiet cries for help.

* * *

Hinata was starting to really panic now. How was she going to get back home in time for lunch? Her father will practically kill her if she's late for lunch. If she gets there at all.

Hinata froze when she started hearing sounds of someone running. The footsteps were getting louder, meaning someone was getting closer. She closed her eyes and braced herself.

"Hinata?" she heard a boy call out.

Her eyes widened. "Sasuke?" she said loudly.

She saw Sasuke go through the bushes, looking a bit distraught.

"You're alright," he said, relieved. He walked over to her and crouched down.

"Yes, b-but someone stole my c-clothes and towel," she said, embarrassed.

Sasuke sighed and wiped away her tears. "Sakura," he said simply.

"Why would she do that, Sasuke?" she asked him.

He raised his eyebrow. "You're really asking me that?"

"Ah," she said, suddenly realizing his point.

"Hold on, I'll just get your clothes back, alright?"

"Alright, thank you Sasuke," she said, smiling again.

* * *

Sasuke ran towards the village, to Sakura's house. When he got there, he knocked on the door and Sakura answered. Her innocent look was awkwardly plastered on her face.

"Sas--"

"Where are Hinata's clothes? And her towel?" he asked her angrily.

Sakura looked at him, bewildered. "What are you talking about?"

"Just give me her damn stuff, Sakura," he ordered.

Sakura huffed, defeated. Sasuke was way too scary when he's angry. She ran upstairs to her room to get the clothes and the towel. When she came back to the door, she handed them over to him.

"Don't you ever do something that immature again," he told her.

She just nodded, tears in her eyes.

* * *

Sasuke ran back to Hinata and handed over her clothes and towel, much to her relief. He waited behind a tree while Hinata got dressed. [ _A/N: Aw, good boy. :3_ ]

When Hinata had finished, it was almost lunchtime.

"I have to get back home fast," she told Sasuke. "Father will kill me if I'm late for lunch."

Sasuke smirked. "I know a way," he said.

He hoisted Hinata up on his back, getting a surprised squeak from her.

"Sasuke, what are you doing?!" she asked, wide-eyed.

"Getting you back home fast," he said, snickering.

Needless to say, Hinata got home in no time.


End file.
